Monthly Archives: July 2013

We have some inaugural entrants into what I am officially calling the San Francisco Overbidders Club. What does it take to make the cut? You need to overbid more than 25% for a property and close the sale.

There are two underlying requirements to make it into the Overbidders Club. The first is wherewithal, meaning you have to have the financial means to pull it off. In most cases, we’re talking half down, or all cash. The second is will. You have to want that property enough to be willing to pay well above what all other buyers may be offering. Continue Reading

So I had clients who stopped in at an open house recently that I recommended they see. The single-family home was well appointed, renovated, and on a lovely block. They loved the floor plan and overall space. The garden was cute and private. They basically liked everything about it—except for the adjacent neighbor’s rundown house that was ripe for its own renovation.

In a city as dense as San Francisco, it’s important for buyers and sellers to consider the “neighbor factor.” In the case of the aforementioned property, the prospect of living next to the rundown home—or next to a future construction site—was essentially a deal breaker for my buyers. Continue Reading

In a market where new listings get multiple offers within a week or two, it’s important not to lose sight of the rare homes that are taking offers “as they come.” Maybe the list price started out too high, and buyers are fearing that the sellers are looking for a lot more than their asking price. Or maybe there’s something particularly challenging about the location or floor plan (that you may be able to live with). And of course, we can’t ignore the possibility that the seller is simply not genuinely motivated to sell. In any event, here are my picks for three weeks or longer: Continue Reading

It’s been a busy first half of 2013 for buyers and sellers of San Francisco real estate—and the rapid pace hasn’t been without its headaches for the buyers who were hoping to purchase a home by now. Inventory remained low, prices escalated, interest rates hit record lows (but have been on the rise as of late). Most sellers achieved multiple offers on their homes, regardless of neighborhood, and cash buyers seemed to pop up in every extreme multiple-offer situation. New construction returned to the city at a frenzied pace, with new condo developments breaking ground in transit-rich, central neighborhoods, as well as in more remote areas that could certainly use more residential units. Continue Reading

I just listed and sold two great condos for my clients. 472 12th Avenue is a 2BR/1BA unit in the Inner Richmond with lovely period detail, a remodeled kitchen, formal dining room, one- to two-car parking and shared landscaped garden. List price was $799,000 and we received five offers.

1300 Fell #3 also closed late last week. This was a top-floor, spacious unit with three large bedrooms, two full baths and private garage parking. We received about a dozen offers on the property, and it was also listed for $799,000.

Our current loan landscape is more complicated than ever, and it’s important to vet a particular unit and HOA alongside your lender before you even submit an offer. To that end, our team at Guarantee Mortgage assembled a list of key questions you and your Realtor should have answered (either through the disclosures or the listing agent) before you get your contract going. Lenders have many restrictions these days, and they’re related to these key areas: Continue Reading

It’s not news that most properties in San Francisco have been selling for more than their asking prices. However, I managed to find three properties that sold in the past two weeks for substantially less than their list prices: Continue Reading